Michael Bisping on Oleksandr Usyk beating Tyson Fury: ‘For once in boxing, they got it right’
UFC Hall of Famer Michael Bisping believes Tyson Fury has nothing left to prove after his second straight loss to Oleksandr Usyk.
Usyk retained his WBC, WBA and WBO heavyweight titles when he defeated Fury by unanimous decision this past Saturday in Saudi Arabia. For Bisping, Usyk won in much more definitive fashion after winning his first meeting against Fury by split decision seven months ago.
“Usyk, of course, was the better boxer,” Bisping said on his YouTube channel. “He was the more efficient boxer, he was landing more, missing less. Fury, of course, landed some good shots. He was ripping to the body with beautiful uppercuts, missed the uppercuts to the chin of Usyk just by millimeters. Some of those shots that Fury was throwing, if they had landed, he might have knocked him out in the final rounds. … There was certainly nothing bad about Tyson Fury.
“He pushed the pace, he went 12 rounds, he didn’t get overly tired. Of course, after 12 rounds of boxing you’re going to be fatigued, but he wasn’t blowing out of his eyes. He was in tremendous condition, and he took the shots really well. His punch resistance is still there. This isn’t Tyson Fury on the downslide. This was Tyson Fury just being beat fair and square by the best boxer of his generation.”
All three judges had it 116-112 in favor of Usyk, with the AI judge scoring it 118-112 for Usyk. Bisping is glad to see the judges get it right.
“He just beat Tyson Fury once again via decision,” Bisping said. “Once again, he clipped Tyson Fury, wobbled Tyson Fury, had him hurt on a few occasions, but it wasn’t like Round 9 of the first fight. It wasn’t as bad as that. It wasn’t as dramatic as that.
“But I tell you what: The judges, for once in boxing, they got it right. All the experts had Oleksandr Usyk winning 116-112. So, Usyk, 8 rounds to 4. And that’s not one judge, not two judges, but all three judges. Even the Artificial Intelligence judge had it that way.”
Bisping says Fury should retire, enjoy his life
While Bisping acknowledges that Anthony Joshua is out there as a potential next opponent for Fury, he’d like to see “The Gypsy King” hang up his gloves.
“Now he’s lost two in a row,” Bisping said. “Will that be the end of Tyson Fury? Will he retire? Certainly he’s got nothing to prove. He should be very, very proud of himself. He’s made a ridiculous amount of money. He’s extremely wealthy, he’s been the heavyweight champion of the world, one of the biggest names in British heavyweight boxing.
“So, he can walk off into the sunset, and if we never see him fight again, thank you, Tyson Fury, for all of the entertainment, because it was always entertaining. In the ring, after the ring, at the press conferences, at the weigh-ins, there’s always a show from Tyson Fury. … I would love to see Tyson Fury go off into retirement, enjoy himself, be proud of himself, and enjoy the money and wealth that he’s amassed and go and live a long, happy, healthy life.”
